Unwanted Proposal
"He passed the critical stage, and now we just need to wait for him to wake up," Marleen recalled the doctor's words from earlier. She stood, gazing at Flynn, who was still lying on the bed.
"Mom…" Anastasia reached for Marleen's hand. "You need to eat and rest." Concerned, Anastasia suggested. Marleen had been there since yesterday, only drinking water. When asked to eat, she refused, saying she didn't have much of an appetite.
"You go first, I will wait until he wakes up." Marleen didn't take her eyes off Flynn.
"But Mom–" Anastasia began, wanting to persuade her more, but a knock on the door distracted her. She walked towards the door and opened it slightly. "Who…?" Her words trailed off as she didn't recognize the person standing in front of her.
"Oh…" The man, who looked like he was in his mid-forties, quickly took out a name card from his wallet. "David, David Harris."
Taking the card from David, Anastasia read it. Chief Financial Officer of Flynn's Company. She looked at David and said, "I'm sorry, but for now, my dad isn't allowed visitors except family members."
"I understand, but I came here because I wanted to meet you. Miss Anastasia, right?" David asked, though he was certain the person in front of him was who he was seeking.
"Me?" Anastasia looked baffled. "Why?"
"This is about the company. I was told to meet you if something happened to Flynn," David explained.
"Are you sure, Anastasia? Not Isabella? You might have misheard." Anastasia tried to confirm it, finding it strange that he would ask for her instead of his real daughter, Bella.
"No, I am sure Mr. Flynn asked me to meet you instead of Isabella. If you don't mind, can we talk somewhere else? This is something quite important." David's expression was serious.
Though Anastasia was confused, she nodded in agreement and looked back at her mother. "Mom, I'm going out for a while. Make sure you eat the food I put on the table."
Marleen didn't respond. She seemed lost in her own world, thinking about Flynn, who still hadn't woken up after the accident.
"Let's go," Anastasia said as she stepped out of the room and headed to the elevator.
As they entered the elevator, the Harrington family stepped out of the other one. Daniel, who looked like he had been forced to follow, had wrinkles on his forehead from frowning.
"You might meet her here, so think about it first, okay?" Diana held Daniel's arm as they walked toward Flynn's room.
"Mom, aren't we here to visit a sick person? Why are you still talking about this stupid marriage arrangement?" Daniel's words were true, but his tone was off, prompting a glare from Andrew.
"You are talking to your mom..." Andrew's words were a warning.
Daniel raised his eyes, realising he had sounded rude. "I'm sorry... but Mom... I've known Bella since she was a kid. Why do you think I rejected this marriage?"
"Bella?" Diana was confused. "I am not talking about her."
"Then…who?" Daniel asked in confusion.
"Stop." The word from Andrew's mouth was enough to halt both mother and son. They arrived in front of the room, and Andrew hesitated to knock on the door.
They had heard about Flynn's accident yesterday but couldn't come right away because Andrew was so busy. When he called this morning, he was told that Flynn's family was not receiving visitors. Despite this, he thought it best to still come and meet Flynn's family to offer words of encouragement, considering they were going to become family.
"Uncle... Auntie?" Bella's voice came from behind them.
Andrew turned around quickly. "Oh Bella, we came to see your dad. How is he doing?"
Bella pursed her lips, her smile tinged with sadness. "He's still not awake..."
Diana immediately walked towards Bella and gave her a warm hug. "He will be okay…don't worry too much. Have you eaten? Where's your mom?" she asked as she released the hug.
Bella's eyes shifted slightly. "She's inside."
"And your sister?" Diana continued.
"Probably inside too…" Bella answered, her tone tinged with annoyance.
"Can we see your dad?" Andrew asked.
"Sure… just go in." Bella said as she slid the door open, then suddenly stopped. "Oh, wait…" she peeked inside, looking for Anastasia. Confirming she wasn't there, Bella turned back, her smile widening. "Go in."
Daniel, still confused, furrowed his brow. He followed them inside and saw only Marleen and Flynn lying on the bed. 'Sister? She has a sister?' he thought.
Daniel knew that Bella was the only daughter before Flynn married Marleen, but he never knew about another daughter they were talking about or probably because he never really cared about other family matters.
As Diana spoke to Marleen, offering words of comfort, Daniel sat silently on the sofa. He didn't really want to talk, even though Bella was there.
"Thanks for coming," Bella said, trying to break the silence between them.
He just nodded.
"You must be angry, right?" Bella suddenly asked, her voice lower than usual, perhaps not wanting the others to hear.
Daniel turned to her, frowning. He didn't really understand the question. Why would he be mad? He was a bit annoyed at being forced to come, but visiting someone who was sick wasn't enough to make him angry.
"Well… I was shocked too that you're arranging to marry Anna. If I were you, I'd probably be mad too," Bella continued talking, even though she didn't get much of a response from Daniel. "But Ethan, did you know that Anna also refused to go through with this arranged marriage?"
"Is she?" Daniel finally responded. Another name that popped up in their conversation got him curious. 'Anna must be her sister, right?'
Bella nodded excitedly, happy that Daniel finally replied. She tried her best not to smile. "Dad was probably on his way to tell Uncle that she rejected the proposal, but…," she looked down, "this happened."
Daniel was quiet, listening to Bella. He could only observe her expression. There wasn't much he could read from her, but Bella suddenly spoke again.
"I told Dad, you probably would agree to this marriage proposal if it were me." Bella raised her head and gave him a pursed smile. "You would, right?"